Inflatable aerial toy



Dec. 28, 1965 A, GQLDFARB 3,225,488

INFLATABLE AERIAL TOY Filed Jan. 115, 1964 ADOLPH E- GOLDFAPE,

IN VEN TOR.

A TTORNEK United States Patent 3,225,488 INFLATABLE AERIAL TOY Adolph E. Goldfarb, 7427 Varna St., North Hollywood, Calif. Substituted for abandoned application Ser. No. 34,806, June 8, 1960. This application Jan. 13, 1964, Ser. No.

4 Claims. (Cl. 46-89) This invention relates to a toy in the form of an inflatable missile or the like which can be either thrown like a dart or kicked and thrown like a football, which is stabilized in flight, but which is entirely safe and completely harmless.

It is a primary object of the invention to provide and make available a toy as stated in the foregoing and particularly to achieve a type of toy which may be thrown and which possesses the characteristics of being fascinating and having entertainment value without danger of any kind.

Another object of the invention is to provide a toy of the type described having fins which may be employed both as a kicking-tee and as flight stabilizing means.

Preferably, the toy takes the form of an inflated envelope having tapered forward and rear portions and which is circular in transverse cross-section. The inflatable envelope is made of a flexible material having suflicient weight such that the inflated toy can be enterta-iningly thrown like a dart or kicked and thrown like a football, but being light and soft, is completely harmless, being incapable of injuring anyone struck by it.

A further object is to provide in a toy of the type described means for causing it to rotate about its longitudinal axis while in flight in order to stablize the toy so that it follows a truer flight path and may be thrown more accurately.

A further object is to provide in a toy as described, the feature of a pocket in the envelope adapted for the carrying or transporting of an article in flight, such as a message written on a piece of paper and carried in the pocket.

Preferably, the pocket referred to in the foregoing is formed in the nose of the toy lying on the longitudinal axis and having closure means in the form of a cork which is of course very light in weight.

Further objects and numerous advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description and annexed drawings, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a side view partly cut away of the device of the invention in inflated condition;

FIGURE 2 is a rear view of the toy of FIG. 1;

FIGURE 3 is a front view of the toy of FIG. 1; and

FIGURE 4 is a partial side view of a modified form of the invention differing from that of FIG. 1.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, numeral designates generally an inflated envelope which, when inflated, forms the toy of the invention. The toy 10 has the shape shown in FIG. 1 when inflated. It is formed of an envelope made of a light flexible material such as thin rubber or a light flexible plastic material as indicated in cross-section at 11. The inflated envelope is circular in. transverse cross-section and has tapering forward and rearward portions as shown. The material 11 preferably has just suflicient weight that the toy when inflated can be fairly accurately thrown like a dart or kicked and thrown like a football. The envelope may be inflated by a nipple or valve member as shown diagrammatically at 13. The member 13 may be made of rubber having a central orifice 14 which is normally closed sealing the interior of the envelope and through which a tube may be inserted for inflating the envelope.

3,225,488 Patented Dec. 28, 1965 It is preferable that the toy rotate in flight about its longitudinal axis to stabilize it and make it possible that it be thrown more accurately.

The envelope 10 has integral fins at the rear part thereof which may be inflated as shown or which may be solid. The fins include the vertical stabilizing fins 16 and 17 and the horizontal stabilizing fins 19 and 20. In referring to the stabilizing fins as vertical and horizontal, it is to be understood of course that these terms are used relatively; i.e., the fins 19 and 20 lie in a plane which is normal to the plane of the fins 16 and 17. The fins preferably have the shape and configuration as may be observed from FIGS. 1 and 2, the fins being slightly broader or enlarged towards their outward portions as indicated at 22 in FIG. 2 and having a rearward taper from these portions.

Preferably, the toy is caused to rotate in flight about its longitudinal axis and, in a preferred form of the invention, this rotation may be produced by an integral protuberance as shown at 24 on one of the fins, such as the fin 19. By reason of this protuberance, the configuration is not symmetrical about the longitudinal axis and resistance offered by the protuberance facilitates rotation of the toy about its longitudinal axis.

One fascinating and entertaining feature of the invention is that the toy is capable of carrying or transporting a light object in flight, such as a piece of paper with a message written on it. To accommodate this purpose, there is integrally formed in the forward part of the envelope an inwardly extending pocket 26 which may preferably be cylindrical having its axis aligned with the longitudinal axis of the envelope. With this configuration, the nose of the envelope when inflated as shown at 27 is flat. The entrance to the pocket or cargo space 26 is preferably closed by a closure member in the form of a cork 28 which is of course very light. The outer surface portion of the cork 28 is rounded or configurated as shown so that its contour is faired as shown to the outer contour of the inflated envelope. With the envelope 10 inflated, the cork 28 may be removed and a message inserted into the pocket or cargo compartment 26 and the cork 28 re-inserted. The toy may then be thrown like a dart and it will rotate about its longitudinal axis in flight so as thereby to be stabilized and to follow a fairly accurate flight path. The toy may be thrown against an object or it may be caught by another child at the termination of its flight without any danger of harm in either case.

Another fascinating and entertaining feature of the invention is that the fins may be employed as a kicking-tee when the toy is used as a football.

FIG. 4 shows a slightly modified form 10a of the invention wherein one of the fins, such as for example a horizontal fin as designated at 30, is angularly displaced slightly out of a plane normal to the plane of the other fins 16 and 17. FIG. 4 shows the angular displacement of the fin 30 from a dotted line position lying in a plane parallel to and containing the longitudinal axis of the toy and normal to the plane of the fins 16 and 17. By reason of this angular displacement of the fin 30, the toy 10 rotates about its longitudinal axis in flight and is thus stabilized.

From the foregoing, those skilled in the art will observe that the invention provides a toy of a fascinating and entertaining nature particularly in that it provides an outlet for the normally extraordinarily great propensities that children have for throwing and kicking objects. This end is achieved, however, while at the same time assuring complete safety since the nature of the toy is such that by reason of its lightness, softness and flexibility, it is incapable of harming either a person or an object. It further has the advantage of realizing the ends stated above extremely inexpensively because of the simplicity of the toy and the small amount and cheapness of the materials required. The toy further possesses the entertaining and fascinating features of being able to transport light articles or objects as described and of being useable as a football.

The foregoing disclosure is representative of preferred forms of the invention and is to be interpreted in an illustrative rather than a limiting sense, the invention to be accorded the full scope of the claims appended hereto.

What is claimed is:

1. An inflatable toy comprising:

an envelope made of a flexible material, said material having suflicient weight that said toy, when inflated, can be kicked like a football; valve means mounted in said envelope for inflating it, said envelope when inflated being circular in transverse cross-section and having tapered forward and rearward portions; and fin means provided on said rearward portion of said envelope, said fin means extending rearwardly of said rearward portion for supporting said toy in kicking position, whereby said toy may be employed as a football, said fin stabilizing said toy during flight thereof, said fin means comprising a plurality of fins, one of said fins being positioned at a relatively small angle to a plane normal to the plane occupied by others of said fins for causing rotation of said toy about its longitudinal axis in flight.

2. An inflatable toy comprising: an envelope made of a flexible material; valve means for inflating sa-id envelope, said envelope when inflated forming a body which is circular in transverse cross-section having tapering forward and rearward portions, said body being symmetrical with reference to a transverse central plane, said envelope having inflatable stabilizing fins at the rear part thereof lying in planes substantially normal to each other, said envelope having suflicient rigidity when inflated so that it can be kicked like a football; and means on said envelope for causing it to rotate about its longi tudinal axis in flight, said envelope otherwise having a faired exterior contour uninterrupted by other protuberances, said envelope having a pocket formed therein adapted to receive and transport therein an article such as a message, and a faired closure for said pocket forming a part of the exterior contour of said envelope.

3. A toy as in claim 2 wherein said pocket is formed by an inwardly depressed portion of the material of the envelope at the nose thereof and lying on the longitudinal axis of said envelope.

4. A toy as in claim 2 wherein the means for causing rotation of the toy comprises one of said stabilizing fins positioned at a relatively small angle to a plane normal to the plane occupied by others of the stabilizing fins.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,180,681 4/1916 Wheelan 46-88 2,443,395 6/1948 Lutins 273-1065 2,763,958 9/1956 Lemelson 4689 2,921,404 1/1960 Lescher 46-81 X FOREIGN PATENTS 729,973 5/1932 France. 993,495 7/ 1951 France.

RICHARD C. PINKHAM, Primary Examiner. 

1. AN INFLATABLE TOY COMPRISING: AN ENVELOPE MADE OF A FLEXABLE MATERIAL, SAID MATERIAL HAVING SUFFICIENT WEIGHT THAT SAID TOY, WHEN INFLATED CAN BE KICKED LIKE A FOOTBALL; VALVE MEANS MOUNTED IN SAID ENVELOPE FOR INFLATING IT, SAID ENVELOP WHEN INFLATED BEING CIRCULAR IN TRANSVERSE CROSS-SECTION AND HAVING TAPERED FORWARD AND REARWARD PORTIONS; AND FIN MEANS PROVIDED ON SAID REARWARD PORTION OF SAID ENVELOPE, SAID FIN MEANS EXTENDING REARWARDLY OF SAID REARWARD PORTION FOR SUPPORTING SAID TOY IN KICKING POSITION, WHEREBY SAID TOY MAY BE EMPLOYED AS A FOOTBALL, SAID FIN STABILIZING SAID TOY DURING FLIGHT THEREOF, SAID FIN MEANS COMPRISING A PLURALITY OF FINS, ONE OF SAID FINS BEING POSITIONED AT A RELATIVELY SMALL ANGLE TO A PLANE NORMAL TO THE PLANE OCCUPIED BY OTHERS OF SAID FINS OF CAUSING ROTATION OF SAID TOY ABOUT ITS LONGITUDINAL AXIS IN FLIGHT. 